Anywhere But There
by Pirinitete
Summary: After Edward was created, he went rogue for ten years, but he didn't do it alone. She was his past, she was his nightmare, she was everything he'd tried to forget.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

* * *

><p>I was naked. I was covered in blood. I was <em>burning<em>.

There were bodies. So many bodies around me, littering the corridor of darkness I was crouched in. An alley, my mind supplied.

One of the bodies twitched, and my mouth latched onto his throat before I had the chance to think. I sucked the last of his life from him, his blood soothing that forever present burning. It had been years since I'd been on a bender like this. I don't even remember what started it.

The last thing I remembered was being in a bar, entertaining two men with Edward.

_Edward… _

Where was he? Normally, he would be here indulging with me. Where was _here_, exactly?

I kicked the bodies around until I found a woman. I took her clothes and tried to figure out how to put them on myself. There were so little of them… Holes in places that should not have holes.

Once everything was in place, or at least, was not falling off me, I took a jacket from one of the men. Even with the coat, these clothes left me feeling over exposed.

There was nothing to be done about the bodies, I had no other way to cover my tracks, than to rip them apart, hiding my bite marks.

Exiting the alley, my senses were assaulted. The lights, the sounds, the smells. It was too much. So many lights. They were everywhere, so bright after the darkness of the alley. All of them flashing, each saying something different. What were they? God, the smells were horrendous. With the smell of fresh blood from the massacre in the alley gone, I could now smell the thousands of bodies that had walked past this spot. Sweat, sex, urine. All burning my sensitive nose. There was a screech, but not from a person. It was so loud, reverberating through my head, coming from so many of these bizarre metal boxes. They remind me of the horseless carriages, but sleeker, louder, yet quieter.

Something clearly wasn't right. It didn't take a vampire to figure that out. I had to find Edward. He would know what had happened.

I looked at the towering buildings looming over me, blaring lights and sounds from a million holes. I had to get away from here.

I ran, becoming nothing more than a gust of wind to the hordes of people.

When the lights and the sounds died away, I slowed.

I didn't know what to do. It was not a thing I was familiar with, nor did I enjoy it. I needed to find Edward. He would explain everything to me. He would help me. Like always. We had been together for almost ten years. We'd been stalking the same prey, both so absorbed in the hunt that we hadn't been aware of the others presence until the time to strike.

_He bared his teeth to me, pinning me to the wall. The stunned young man behind him, too stupid to run. A growl ripped from deep in his chest. "He's mine," he declared. "Leave before I kill you too."_

I had just smirked and dared him to try, but I was content to share if he was. Turned out that he had been as lonely as me. We teamed up, prowling the nights together. Edward always picked out the targets, it seemed to be his favourite part. I always got to decide how to take them down. That had been mine. We'd travelled the cities together… The last I remembered was Chicago.

That's where I'd start, I decided. I'd try to find his scent there. A hard task, but not impossible. Tracking came easily for me, more easy than hiding did for Edward. I only hoped he was hiding, though I could not think of a reason why, but I also could not let myself ponder the alternative. Something awful could not have befallen him. It was not possible.

First, I had to find out where I was.

I kept running, not wishing to return to that dreadful place I awoke to. I followed the hard gray surface, so different from the road of my memories. Eventually it lead me to a small building, with strange metal boxes in front of it. Each had a hose attached to it. My curious mind wanted me to explore the bizarre thing more, but the practical side made me leave it and enter the building with the light spilling through the glass wall. I was met with shelves stacked with meaningless things to me. I headed to the beating heart, and found a young boy, that looked like he was having trouble with his face. All red and blotchy.

"Good evening," he started in a voice that did not disguise his boredom. "What the…" he exclaimed as he caught sight of my no doubt blood covered face and bright red eyes. I flew to him, only the short counter between us. I grasped his face and forced him to look me in the eye.

"You do not see any blood on me, nor do I seem at all strange to you." I felt my eyes burn as I used my gift, his own had a glazed look. "Where is the powder room?"

He pointed to a door in the corner of the small space. "What is the date?" I asked next.

"29th of August, 2012," he answered, confirming my suspicions. Of course I had never considered just how much time had passed. A couple of decades maximum… Not to be in the new millennium.

Why hadn't Edward come to find me?

I let the boy go, and his face relaxed to boredom.

I tidied herself up using the basin and the mirror, carefully not letting myself feel anything. Or think. Neither would lead to good places.

Looking presentable, but still unnervingly unclothed-I fervently hoped that this was not the style of the times, for I feared I would not adapt to it-I left the small, dirty space.

I smiled at the boy behind the counter, he smiled back looking a little dazed. No need to use my power this time. "Where are we?" I asked sweetly.

"S-Seattle," he replied.

I left the establishment.

Of course I would wind up on the other side of the country from where I want to be. It would be almost a days run if I were to take the most direct route. Of course, in 90 years, a lot of things were sure to have changed-Like another of those horrible cities that I'd first awoken it. I would prefer to avoid those.

As I ran, I pondered the chances that I would catch his scent. I still remembered it, a vampire never forgets them, like honey and wine his was. If he was still there, I had no doubt that I would find him, but of course, after 90 years I was sure he would've moved on by now. But, for lack of another option, I pushed forward with the hope that Chicago was not much bigger than I remembered.

I would not let myself think of what I would do if he was dead. He could not be dead, he was a survivor. There was another scenario I feared equally as much. That he had returned to his 'family.' He had rarely talked of them during our time together, but from what he told me, I knew it would be a bad thing for us. They curbed him, made him live off of animal blood, reining him in from all that he was. I saw protection when I thought of their numbers, but he saw love, and that would make him weak. Love had no place with vampires. Sex and fondness, you were lucky if you found both in the same person. With Edward, I had fondness, though I'd made it no secret I'd wanted the other. But I did not press him, for I was so thankful that I was no longer alone.

"_Why?" He screamed at me, his body vibrating with anger._

_I took a step back from him, dropping the lifeless body to the ground. "I'm sorry, Edward," I whispered. "I'm sorry."_

_He didn't seem to have heard. His eyes were blazing, a crimson fire. "Why did you kill her? She was innocent. So, so pure." He looked like he might explode, or run._

_I sank to the ground, my knees landing in the girls still warm blood flooding out from her limp body. "I-I'm sorry… I didn't mean to… You know I didn't-Please, don't leave me…" I begged, my eyes stinging as they tried to produce tears that were never going to come. "Just please… don't leave me alone…"_

_His eyes softened, and his hands unclenched. He knelt down beside me, his hand softly stroking my hair. "It's okay… I'm not going to leave you. Promise me you'll let me choose from now on, and I'll never leave you."_

"_I promise, Edward. I promise."_

I ran. I ran into the day and into the next night, hoping my memory was keeping me on course. So much had changed. There was no space to breathe, no space for anything but buildings and long straight roads for the fast vehicles.

Once I had the city in my sites, I knew it would be pointless to enter. He was not there. I don't know how I knew, but I trusted my gut that he hadn't been here for a very long time. I wasn't going to waste my time searching hopelessly.

I decided to visit Garrett. He would have an idea of where Edward is, he made it a point of his to know the whereabouts of certain vampires. I was sure Edward would be one of those. Edward and I had met him almost 4 years ago-Well, 94 now.

He lived in a small cabin in some woods in what used to be the middle of nowhere, but was now the outskirts of the sprawling city. I was sure that he would not have moved, he was the type to enjoy a challenge, but not change. He loved to travel and loved adventures, but as far as I know he always came back to the cabin. At least, I was counting on that.

I ran through the small towns where there used to be forest, until I caught his scent. Well, I was sure it was his scent, it smelt a little different. A little more rustic, perhaps.

It led me through a circuitous route into, and around a forest. Dead in the centre was the cabin I remembered.

Garrett was standing out front, clearly expecting me. I stopped dead in surprise. There was a blonde female vampire beside him, but that was not what made me stop.

It was the bright gold colour of their eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Honey?" He was just as stunned as I was by the looks of it.

"'_Honey'?"_ The blonde next to him repeated, turning curious eyes to Garrett.

He shrugged, still not looking away from me as though I might disappear if he did. "It's her name. At least it was."

"Still is," I affirmed. I took a step forward.

"One more move and I'll fry you where you stand," the girl warned, raising her hands, though nothing was in them.

"Kate, she's a friend-A friend I had mourned…" he said cautiously, apparently gauging my reaction to his words.

_Mourned…?_

"I'm missing 90 years because… I was _dead_?" I asked incredulously. My brow furrowed. You'd think I'd remember something as important as dying. "How in the Hell did that happen?" One did not just die. Nor did one just wake up from being dead.

"Perhaps this is a conversation better had inside," Garrett said.

If the cabin was a person, it would be Garrett. It was plain, but exotic in its plainness, with dark wood floors and light furniture it was a nice small space. There were touches of Garrett's adventures all over the place, in paintings, antiques, skulls…

Once we were all seated, a habit more than necessity, Garrett introduced me to the blonde. "Honey, this is my mate, Kate. Kate, this is my friend, Honey."

"Your mate? Never thought I'd see the day," I commented dryly. He had always been too much of an adventurer to settle down. "What's with the eyes?"

His eyebrows rose. "Did Edward never explain that to you?"

I was about to answer, but the blonde-Kate, interrupted. "How do you know Edward?"

I was up before I truly knew what I was doing. For if I did, I wouldn't of been pinning Garrett's mate to the wall, my arm over her neck. I was sure Garrett would kill me any second now, so I asked her quickly, "What do you know of Edward?"

I felt Garrett at my back, but he wasn't attacking, just standing there. Why did he not attack? I fount out a second later as an intense burning shot up my arms and through my body. Everything locked up as I was seized with an almost unbearable pain.

I felt my eyes burn in the way they did when I used my gift. "_Stop_," I growled.

To my surprise, the pain vanished, and a blank look appeared on her face. I had a moment to relax, then I was the one being pinned to the wall, Garrett's hand closing around my throat. "What did you do to her?" He asked, his voice deceptively calm and quiet. I almost didn't notice the growl in it.

"I don't know," I replied, my tone just as calm, but in truth I was terrified, for Garrett would not hesitate to rip my head off where I stand. Friends or not. All it took was one wrong word.

"Your gift. You always claimed that it only worked on humans."

"It does," I responded. "I swear, that my intentions were not to enthral your mate, but to beg for mercy. I truly do not know why it worked on her. It never has before." Of that I was certain. I had tried an innumerable amount of times as it certainly would've gotten me out of a lot of sticky situations. Much like the one I was in now.

He held on a moment more, his eyes boring through me. I assumed he saw my sincerity, as he let me go. "Bring her back," he ordered, his voice gruff.

I went back to the still dazed Kate, being careful to not make any sudden movements for Garrett's benefit.

I awakened my gift, feeling my eyes burn. "Ah… wakey, wakey…" My voice rose in pitch so that it was almost a question. I had no idea what I was doing. I wasn't sure if it worked the same with vampires as it did with humans. I wasn't even sure how it was possible.

Her expression cleared, only to be replaced with rage. "What the fuck did you do to me?" She growled, almost lowering herself to a crouch.

"Kate, love, I'll explain later, but right now I need to know what happened to you, Honey. You just disappeared. Everyone thought you were dead." A fresh pain was in his eyes and now I understood the look he'd given me earlier. He thought I'd just left without saying a word. Hidden myself away to spend the rest of my days alone. It wasn't an uncommon thing for my kind to do. If we tired of our existence, but were too scared to seek truth death, some would let themselves waste away alone in the darkness.

"Garrett, you have to know I wouldn't do that. I wouldn't," I pleaded, needing him to understand that I'm more confused about this than he is. "I don't know what happened, but I seek Edward, for he is sure to know. Does he not wonder what happened to me?"

A weary look entered his eye at the mention of Edward again. "I do not believe Edward would appreciate a visit from you just now."

Denial reared up in me, as pain sliced my dead heart. "No." I was shaking my head, backing away from them both. "No, Edward wouldn't… Where is he? I need to see him. He wouldn't just leave me…"

"Honey, after you disappeared he went back to his family. He's found his mate," Garrett said, speaking very carefully.

"Why… why would that make him unhappy to see me?" I asked. I was so very confused. I'd never been sure that I believed in the concept of a mate. Of being so tightly bound to one person, never being able to move on after their death. That was a human thing. Soul mates. Destiny. Vampires were above that.

"He's had a lot going on, but he's happy now. Just let him be happy."

I was losing my patience, as well as my temper. Nothing he was saying was making any sense, he was just talking nonsense to distract me from finding Edward, and the truth. But I had finally clicked about his eyes. Clearly the animal blood was making him crazy. I wasn't going to stay here and listen to more of it.

I locked eyes with him, and let mine burn. "Honey, don't…"

"Where. Is. He." I demanded, putting all my force into my voice.

"What are you doing?" Kate screamed.

I turned my attention to her for a second to order silence. She froze instantly.

"Answer me Garrett."

His eyes had taken on that glazed over look. "He lives in Forks," he said, his voice distant and robotic. "In a small cottage close to the house where his family lives."

"Do you know what happened to me?" I asked next, I didn't think he truly did, but I had to be sure.

"No."

"Good. When I leave, you will forget that I was ever here. If my scent still lingers, you will think nothing of it," I instructed. He nodded, just one jerky movement of his head.

I let him go and said the same thing to Kate. I hated what I was doing but I wasn't left with a choice. I had to find Edward. I had to know what happened. He must want to know that I'm not dead. And I sure as hell couldn't leave him to the mercy of that diet, to let him suffer insanity and weakness. He was better than that.

I left the cabin. Now, just got to find out what a Forks is.

* * *

><p>I decided to see what had become of my man, Sheldon. He was my assistant, for lack of a better term. He was taught in the ways of the old. Before there was any sort of established power among vampires, we were bonded with witches. We would work together to maintain peace between and with humans. But the Romans wiped a lot of them out when they decided to rule, and the Volturi finished the job when they took over. There were very few left today, and most lived apart from my kind, trying to remain secret from us, as we do to humans. I was extremely lucky to have found Sheldon at an age where he hadn't had it beat into him to stay away from vampires. We went off on our own, protecting each other from the world. He used to clean up my messes, and I would let him practice his magic on me. Not a task I enjoyed at all, I assure you.<p>

I did not expect him to still be among the living, but I just had to know what had become of him. I felt a pang in my heart as I thought of him thinking ill of me, of him assuming that I had just left him. I could only hope that he had trusted that I would not willingly desert him like that.

I trusted him explicitly with my life and with my affairs.

I was on the sideway of the apartment where he used to live with his only family, his little girl. I was glad that it didn't seem to have changed much. Still a four storey brick building, with a rusted fire escape and brown window frames. I could hear a heartbeat coming from the floor he'd lived on, but the rest of the building was strangely dead silent. I jumped to the window, and slid it open. Slipping inside, I quietly shut it again behind.

A light switched on before my feet touched the ground. A boy, no more than twenty years, stood in the doorway to what once was Sheldon's bedroom. It was practically empty now, just holding one table and a small couch. The boy was holding a small velvet bag out in front of him.

"If you touch me, you'll burn," he warned me in a shaky voice.

I nodded. I didn't particularly want to be fried again this day.

"Good. Who are you, vampire?" He demanded, a hardness entering his gaze.

"I am Honey, I'm looking for Sheldon. Judging by your knowledge, I assume you are his offspring."

"His grandson. I've been waiting for you, Honey. My grandfather said you would return soon while he was on his deathbed. But I need you to prove yourself first though. Try to control my mind," he ordered, almost reluctantly. If he was anything like his grandfather, I knew why.

I let my eyes burn. I'd been told that my eyes changed colour when I did this, though I'd never seen it for myself. A startling shade of purple apparently.

A scream tore from his throat, and he hunched in on himself. I had to commend him on not collapsing from the pain that I knew was coursing through his body. I turned it off, not enjoying his pain. I may be a vampire, but I hunt for survival, not for my pleasure. I didn't even play with my food, and this boy would never be food for me.

"Proof enough?" I asked unnecessarily, for he had gone to his knees, not in pain, but in servitude.

"My Mistress, I give my service to you. I am yours, if you so please." His head was bowed down, and he dared not cast a glance up at me. He would probably let me kill him if I were so inclined.

"You may stand. I am not your Mistress, but I will accept your help if you choose to give it. For any request of mine, you may decline without fear of repercussions."

I helped him to his feet, and thus begun our friendship.

He spent the rest of the night teaching me the changes of the times. There were many things that I loved instantly, the computer, the television, the ease of communication. But there were also a lot of things that I'd never learn to love, the obscene fashion, the lack of space, and reality television. What was good about watching orange people scream at each other?

The boy was also named Sheldon. His mother had called him that once it was determined that the magic ran in his veins. I felt strange calling him Sheldon, since I so missed my Sheldon, though, for me it had only been a few days since I'd last see him. It was still strange to think that I'd never see him again. I asked if the boy had any nickname I could call him instead. He said Nick. I still wasn't sure how you got Nick out of Sheldon, but he just smirked when I asked.

Nick showed me a picture of the town Forks on the fascinating computer screen after I had told him that we must go there to find Edward. Sheldon had known Edward, but Edward had not known Sheldon. It was his wish, for he did not trust Edward to keep his existence safe. The town looked small and dreary, definitely not where a vampire should be living.

Sheldon was currently asleep, but he'd promised that we'd leave the second he woke up. It was sometime after mid-day and the sun was still high in the sky. He had been asleep for hours now and I was getting restless. I wanted to be moving, doing something, anything. I had mastered the internet and how to navigate the computer. I'd spent some time reading up on the history of the past century, but I got bored around the 60's. I was just about to practice throwing knives when he woke. Nick saw me, weighed down with his chunky kitchen knives, but didn't comment, just murmured something about dealing with me after coffee.

"Now that my brain is awake, I'll go find you some clothes. Those are covered in blood," he explained, downing the last of that vile looking liquid.

After a few moments of him digging around in his room, he emerged and threw a small pile of clothes at me.

"They're my ex girlfriends."

I held them up to inspect them. "Was she a prostitute?" I asked. Even by today's standards they were lacking a lot of material to be considered clothes.

A bitter look came over his face as he answered. "No, she never got paid."

I didn't understand what he meant, but also didn't care enough to ask. I got changed into the scraps of clothing. A denim skirt that only barely covered my derrière and looked like it'd been ripped to shreds. When I'd asked if he'd attacked her clothes in a fit of anger, he smiled and replied, "It's meant to be like that. It's _distressed_." I couldn't argue with that, I'd be distressed too, if I was expected to function whilst in pieces. The top was a fraction too tight despite the fact that the back was non-existent, but a nice shade of purple.

"You can't expect me to be seen like this?" I demanded, feeling disgusted with myself, society, and just everything in general.

He looked me up and down, then left the room for a few seconds. He came back carrying a pair of heels. "Of course, can't have you wandering around barefoot. What would people think," he mocked.

A low growl was building up in my chest and he instantly turned serious. "Look, do you want to go find Edward, or do you want to go shopping?"

I huffed, my anger turning to mortification. Stupid mortal, using stupid logic. No fair. "Well, hurry up already," I grumped.

The drive was a quiet one. I got in touch with the music of the time. I had to admit that some of it was pretty good. Some girl was whining about finding love in hopeless places, but I doubted she even understood what hopeless truly was. We only stopped when Nick needed to eat and attend to other human things. Being in the car was almost as soothing as running through the forests. I'd have to get Nick to teach me how to drive.

We had just hit the halfway mark when he declared he was about to pass out. "Can't we just keep going?" I complained while he found a small motel to spend the rest of the night in.

"Sure," he said around a yawn." If you want us to end up in a tree." He gave me a dubious look. "On second thought, no, you'd probably take the risk seeing as you'll be the one to walk away from it."He left me standing by the car so he could get a room, mumbling something about not wanting to be seen with a prostitute as he went. He wasn't gone for long, but he came out looking decidedly 'pissed off' as he'd say.

"Fucking rip off. They want $150 for one night. It's a fucking dump!" He said the last part a lot louder than necessary and directed towards the room he'd just come from.

"Come on, I'll sleep in the car." He didn't look like he was looking forward to the prospect.

"What am I meant to do? You can't just expect me to sit in the car doing nothing for hours," I complained.

"Isn't that what you've been doing for the last few hours?" He said under his breath, but he dug around in his purse-sorry, satchel, as he'd adamantly called it when I'd asked if all men these days carried round purses-and pulled out one of those small velvet bags. He handed it to me. "Go get something to eat. Just lay this on the body when you're done, and it'll take care of it."

"Happen to have anymore?" I asked.

He gave me a look.

"What! I'm hungry," I said a little sheepishly.

He sighed but handed two more over. "Go have fun."

Oh, I intended to.

Two sleazy men, and one bitchy woman that chose the wrong person to give judgemental looks to, later, and I was sated, ready to be on the move, and had snagged myself a nice jacket. I'd had the foresight to take it off the woman before I killed her, since I was fully intending to make a mess. Nick's bags were a wonder. Instead of the bodies being burned, or just disappearing like I'd thought they would, the were instead transformed from looking like a vampire attack to instead looking like an act of human violence, that was so common these days. I supposed that was better, though lacking in drama, because now there would be no missing bodies. The last thing I needed was for the Volturi to come snooping around a string of missing people that followed me.

Thankfully, Nick was waking up as I made it back to the car. I may have slammed the door a little harder than I needed to so that he'd wake up just a bit faster. He gave me an ungrateful look, but started the car. We hit the road again.

We entered the town of Forks just before nightfall. The atmosphere in the car had gotten more sombre the closer we got to the small town. I had no plan for what to do, only that I had to see Edward with my own eyes.

It wasn't hard to find the house that Garrett had spoken of. All I had to do was stick my head out the window and follow their scent. It was everywhere, embedded into the very town itself. It was both a good and a bad thing. The scent of many different vampires so ingrained into a place would scare off lone, or small covens of vampires. But it would also entice larger, power hungry covens to attack for the mere sport of it.

We headed down the long, tree-lined driveway that we were led to, not caring about surprise or of warning them. We weren't here to attack, and we didn't want to seem like we were.

There were eight of them standing in front of a large, white house, clearly on the defensive. None of them were Edward, and one wasn't even a vampire. As soon as I stepped out of the car with Nick, I recognized that horrible stench. Shapeshifter. Obviously the animal blood had really ruined them, for them to be consorting with such foul creatures.

We came to a stop about ten meters away from where they stood. We didn't want to seem like we posed a threat.

"Who are you?" One of them stepped forward. He had blond hair, and kind eyes, only ruined by the golden colour of them.

"I'm looking for Edward," I said. I wasn't in the mood for this friendly but wary chit chat approach. I just wanted to see Edward.

"What business do you have with him?" Another vampire asked in a surprisingly formal way. He was a big, burly guy with short brown curls. He kept looking between me and Nick, giving Nick, an obvious human, a strange look.

"I'm an old friend. Look, I'm not here to cause trouble, I swear not to hunt in the area. I just need to see Edward. I need him to explain some things to me." And I need to save him from this lifestyle, I amended in my head.

They all looked to the shortest one there. She somewhat resembled a pixy, with her petite stature and short, spiky hair. She shrugged. "I see nothing to worry about right now."

That made absolutely no sense to me, but they visibly became less tense at her words. I could still see them wondering about Nick though. Why would a human be travelling with a vampire, it was practically written over their faces.

The woman that was standing next to the man that had first spoken stepped forward slightly. She had caramel coloured hair and a soft heart shaped face. "Jacob, perhaps you should take Nessie hunting, and tell Edward that he has a guest."

The shape shifter nodded and strode off to the forest that surrounded the house. He came too close to me for my liking, and I had to suppress the growl that rose through me. I did not hold any affection for these _things. _They were vermin that killed first, and asked questions never. They were even worse than their werewolf counterparts, for at least they could not control what happened to them. These abominations, however, made the conscious decision to be ruthless.

"You'll have to forgive our wariness," the man that I was beginning to think of as the leader said. "I am Carlisle, and this is my wife, Esme." They both came forward to me and Nick, and shook hands with us.

The big one was next, along with a woman that was beautiful, even for vampire standards. From the look on her face, she certainly knew it, too.

"Hey, the names Emmett." His bear of a hand enveloped my own. He had a huge grin on his face, and I found myself smiling along with him, having no idea what about. I sensed, more than saw Nick tense beside me.

"I'm Rosalie," the girl huffed, still standing a few meters away and not looking like she was going to come closer. "He's not your snack, is he?" She asked, indicating Nick.

I gasped, not needing to fake my outrage. "Good God no!" I exclaimed. "I'd never hurt Nick."

Rosalie huffed again.

I could see them regarding me differently, as though they'd just seen me in a new light. These vampires were strange.

"Don't mind her," the pixy-girl said, skipping up to me. "She's a big softie at heart. I'm Alice," she announced, practically hopping on the spot. "Maybe when you've talked to Edward, we can do something about your clothes…" she suggested a little hesitantly, looking like she was waiting for me to rebuff her.

I smiled. "You have no idea how much I'd like that."

She broke out in a huge grin. "Jazz, come meet my new friend!"

They all laughed like it was some joke I didn't get.

A tall, lean man with soft blond curls strode up to me. He was covered in old vampire bites… his arms, his neck, his face… If things were to turn south, he'd be the one I'd look out for first. He literally oozed danger. He offered me a small smile. "Jasper," he informed me gruffly, with the most adorable southern drawl in just that one word. My heart melted a little.

"Nice to meet you," I said, trying to not laugh at how stoic he was, or give away my adoration of his accent.

The last vampire came forward now. A short brunette, though not as short as Alice. "I'm Edward's wife, Bella." She was looking at me warily and with thinly veiled hostility, something that didn't look like it was common with her.

"Pleasure to meet you, Bella," I said, trying to sound sincere, but most likely failing. "My name's-"

"Honey." A velvet voice that I'd never forget spoke from the edge of the tree line. "How… are you here?" Edward asked. He looked the same and yet so very different. His eyes were golden but that was minor compared to the other change in him. The darkness he'd always carried around with him, the one that I'd tried so hard to get rid of, was gone. The haunted look that'd always been there wasn't anymore. For me, it'd only been a week ago that I'd last seen him. I needed to remember that it'd actually been about ninety years in truth. No wonder he looked like he was seeing a ghost. But even then, his next words hurt.

"You can't-you can't be here…"

"Why," I whispered, hating the dread that was crawling up my spine.

"Because I killed you."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Lemme know what you think, if you like it, hate it, have any clue of where I'm going with this... This is my first fanfic. I don't usually let people read anything I write, so if you're reading this, feel privileged :) <strong>


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